NOTEBOOK: Coach prefers to credit players for A&M's success

COLLEGE BASEBALL NOTEBOOKPraise too hot to handle

MOISEKAPENDA BOWER, Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle

Published 5:30 am, Friday, May 16, 2008

Texas A&M coach Rob Childress prefers to deflect the praise of the Aggies' sensational regular season onto his well-deserving players, but there is no denying he has routinely pushed the right buttons during his three seasons in College Station.

No. 9 A&M enters the Lone Star Showdown series with rival Texas holding a 1 1/2 -game lead over Nebraska in the Big 12 standings. Should the Aggies (42-11, 19-5) fend off the Cornhuskers (39-9-1, 17-6-1), they would clinch their first regular-season Big 12 title since 1999 and snap a seven-year string in which either UT or Nebraska finished atop the standings. A sweep of UT (31-19, 12-12) would net A&M the best Big 12 mark ever.

"It is reassuring that we're doing things the right way and that we were doing things the right way at Nebraska the eight years I was there and at Arkansas the three years that I was there," Childress said. "We're not doing anything different. It's just reassuring that we're doing it here at a great university in a great baseball state."

For Childress, advancing his philosophy depends on the contributions of his players.

Senior second baseman Blake Stouffer returned despite being drafted in the fourth round last summer, and he has provided vital leadership. Senior third baseman Dane Carter (.399, eight homers, 58 RBIs) is enjoying an unexpected breakout season. Newcomers Jose Duran, a junior transfer shortstop, and Barret Loux and Brooks Raley, both freshman pitchers, have exceeded modest expectations while contributing to the Aggies' success.

Childress would have you believe those factors are the primary reasons the Aggies stand on the brink of a conference title. He's ignoring the fact that he's a factor, too.

"It's about our players," Childress said. "They're the ones that make all the sacrifices, the ones getting up at five o'clock in the morning in the fall to lift and working their tails off.

"It's not about a coach. It's about the players that invested all the time, effort and energy in maintaining and sustaining throughout the conference race. It's about them, not me."

'He'd be all-world'

Fifth-year senior lefthander
Tim Erickson
was well on his way to becoming the most accomplished closer in Lamar history when, just three weeks into the season, Cardinals coach
Jim Gilligan
summoned him out of the bullpen in the first inning at
Texas-Arlington
.

Nine innings of relief later, Erickson added another title to his résumé.

Erickson (7-1, 2.60 ERA) not only leads Lamar in saves (nine), he is fourth in starts made (five). Gilligan is utilizing Erickson out of the bullpen Friday nights and starting him Sunday afternoons.

"He uses Friday night as a bullpen (session), and there aren't a lot of guys who could have adjusted to that mentally," Gilligan said. "Physically, there was no problem with him. He's been fabulous for us. He is one of the best kids we've ever had."

Erickson was added in February to the Stopper of the Year Watch List, but his time as a starter may prevent his claiming the honor as the nation's top closer.

"He is certainly overachieving," Gilligan said. "When you're projecting a guy's natural ability, he's an overachiever. He works hard (and) knows how to pitch. If it would all go the way we'd like to draw it up, he'd be all-world. And he deserves it."

Baby steps for TCU

Following its final regular-season series at New Mexico, TCU will host the Mountain West Conference tournament for the first time beginning Wednesday.

Lupton Stadium, which opened in 2003, will serve as the site of the four-day tourney. No. 24 TCU (36-16, 16-5) has never hosted a league tourna-ment or an NCAA regional, and the plan is to position the program for the latter by excelling at the former.

"That's how it goes with the beginning steps to developing your fan base and helping the people that are associated
with your program learn how
to host a regional," Horned Frogs coach Jim Schlossnagle said. "In my experience, those are the baby steps that you take."